


I understand

by Xuxi_in_the_building



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band), SEVENTEEN - Fandom
Genre: Gen, Light Angst, No Smut, Sorry Not Sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-21
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:34:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23773150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xuxi_in_the_building/pseuds/Xuxi_in_the_building
Summary: Minghao is a transfer student at Pledis High. He thinks his life will be better than at his old school. Well, he was wrong.
Relationships: Boo Seungkwan/Chwe Hansol | Vernon, Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Yoon Jeonghan, Hong Jisoo | Joshua/Lee Seokmin | DK, Jeon Wonwoo/Kim Mingyu, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Wen Jun Hui | Jun/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Kudos: 18





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, this is my first book on this platform so don't hate m8 if the grammar is off or anything like that.
> 
> Enjoy!  
> \-----------------------------------------
> 
> 1\. years: Chan, Vernon, Seungkwan  
> 2\. years: Jun, Joshua, Minghao, Seokmin, (Mingyu)  
> 3\. years: Soonyoung, Jihoon  
> 4\. years: Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Wonwoo 

Hi, hello, annyeong. (That's how I start my stories, don't question it)

Dear diary,

May or may not know me, I'm just an ordinary boy... I guess. My name is Xu Minghao, and I'm 16 years old. Let me tell you something about myself.

I came from China to Korea when I was younger, and that's why I never really had any friends. The only person who ever cared for me is my sister, but she did that out of pity. Would anyone care if I disappeared? Probably not. I've attended SM high school since I was little because it had a middle school and a high school in the same building.   
  
Well, I don't go there anymore.

why?

I was _expelled._

My mom wasn't too happy, but I didn't care. Why am I like this? Is it even worth living if all I do is disappoint people? 

But mom enrolled me in a new school. The name of the school was _Pledis High._

The school was more for dropouts/miss fits or more violent people like me, that's why my mom happily enrolled me. The students often got into fights, there was a lot of bullying happening, and the teachers were ruthless because they had to be to keep students in check.   
_______

I closed my diary and hid it under my bed. I opened the drawer and took out a pack of cigarettes, opening the window next to my bed and going up to the roof Where I light one up. I pulled out my phone from my pocket, grabbed my blue earphones and plugged them in. I listened to Big Bang's Loser. I smiled and stared at the stars, the wind blowing into my face. I promised myself that I would change and finally make friends. Hopefully. I looked at the time on my phone.

_10.30 pm. I better go to sleep._

I threw the cigarette off the roof and climbed back in and threw myself on my bed. I fell asleep quickly.

______

my alarm clock went off, which made me bolt right out of bed and land on the floor.

_This thing gave me PTSD already, aish_

I stood up and turned the device off and headed towards the bathroom. I did the normal things and went back to my room where I got dressed. I grabbed my backpack and headed out to school.

**3rd POV**

Minghao stood in front of the school gates, students already rushing in from all sides. It was a ruckus. Everyone was pushing each other, not because they were late but because they chose to. He was terrified but took a deep breath and entered the school. While walking in the corridor he saw that the walls were old, the lockers rusted and there were cage-like things outside of the windows. The doors and floor were a bit dirty, he looked up at the ceiling, seeing more dirt. He accidental bumped into someone.

''I'm so sorry'' Minghao apologized and looked up to see a brown-haired boy gawking at him. With a bowed head, Minghao ran past the boy and straight into a classroom. He saw the teacher there who gave him a nod and wrote something on her computer.

He sat down near the window, adoring the outside playground with tiny kindergarten kids playing on it.

''okay class, calm down. We have a new student, please introduce yourself.'' the teacher said bored and the class immediately ceased chatting and all the attention was turned on me.

**1st POV**

''my name is Xu Minghao, and I transferred here. Please take good care of me.'' I bowed and sat back down.

''you heard that Jun? another Chinese chingu.'' one kid spoke up, earning a scoff from his friend. I watched him and that 'Jun' fellow was the one I had smacked into before. He was scary.

''well, who wants to show our new student around?'' the teacher asked and no one raised their hand for a while. He looked around the classroom, seeing everyone turn to him and stare. He sank back into his seat, he really wasn't acting like himself.

''I guess I can'' a soft voice rang out. The boy sighed and raised his hand.

''That's wonderful, Joshua. As expected.'' the teacher said, and some people in the class snickered. The boy rubbed his neck when he felt a piece of rubber hit it.

The fellow who raised his hand was a brown-haired boy, possibly a little shorter than me. He was wearing a white turtleneck with a jacket and jeans. His ears decorated silver studs, and from one ear dangled a cross earring. He smiled softly at me. I nodded and sent him a grin back.

''well, after this class you can show him around.''

''will do, mam.''

''a foreigner is showing a foreigner around. That's amusing.'' Jun and his friends snickered. Joshua just shot them a glare and opened his notebook. I raised my eyebrow.   
Foreigner? He didn't look foreign to me. He also didn't look mixed. 

After the class finished, I saw a shadow. I looked up, and it was the Joshua boy. He smiled, but his body quickly shot forward right at me.

''move you loser'' the kid from before snickered. That jerk just shoved him into my desk. 

''are you okay?'' I asked him. He pulled himself up and exhaled deeply.

''Yeah,'' he replied and grabbed his backpack from his desk.  
We made our way through the school and he showed me where all the classes were, where were the toilets, janitors' closets, etc.

''So about before. You are also a foreigner?'' I asked him.

_I'm curious._

''Oh yeah, about that. I'm from Los Angeles and only came to Korea a year ago when I became a freshman.'' Joshua blurted out, kinda tripping over his words from time to time. It was like I caught him off guard, but none the less, I nodded and he shot me another smile.

''Anyway, I must warn you about some people here.'' He changed the topic and looked me dead in the eyes after we sat in the library, far away from the librarian's view. I nodded, and he went on.

''Our school is famous for its violent students. You are fresh meat, so it will take time for the bullies since they need time to judge you first. If they decide you are a loser, congratulations that makes two of us. If they decide that you are not a loser, they will leave you alone.'' He told me.

''Minghao. come with me, I need to introduce you to those students.'' He said and pulled out a binder.  
''We should probably make our homework first though,'' he said, and I nodded.


	2. II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, if everyone is bothered by spaces in between paragraphs, I apologise,  
> Enjoy

**3rd pov**

the boys hanged out and had fun. Minghao was happy since he never thought it would turn out like this and now, he had 4 friends. of course that didn't go unnoticed by Seungcheol's, and Jun's gangs.  
after lunch ended, the boys still had classes left, well, most of them. Jeonghan and Wonwoo were 4th years so their classes ended earlier on some days. after the bell rang, Minghao and Joshua had to part ways because he had music while Minghao had art. he waved to the older; he learned that Joshua was older than him by quite a lot which confused him since they were in the same year.

when the class started, the students were greeted by an older male who looked like he came from the mid-eval times. they could just smell the god awful scent of cigarette smoke coming from him. Minghao wondered how he was still employed.

''today class all of you will be paired up on a project which you need to complete by the next week.'' the class grunted in response while the teacher pulled out some sheets and passed them around.

''the theme of this project are dreams. you need to paint a picture. easy as that'' he said and sat down, glancing down at the papers he had left.

''i already paired up all of you.'' he picked a paper up from his drawer while the class complained. he started reading the pairs.

_out of all classes, why does Joshua have to be absent from this one?_

Minghao prayed he would get a decent partner. it didn't matter who, just not Jun.  
he accidentally zoned out, but was quickly brought to reality when he heard his name being mentioned.

''Minghao... i hate to say it, but you will have to be with Jun.'' the teacher muttered something under his breath afterwards.  
Jun? wait no, he didn't want him. he sighed and felt a chair being pulled from beside him. he looked up to the Jun with an annoyed expression.

''we need to come up with a plan.'' he decided that he will try to forget that Jun is his partner and just focus on the task in front of him. Jun just nodded and slouched back in his chair while Minghao pulled out a piece of paper and cut it in half.

''since the topic are dreams, i think we should write down what both of our dreams are so we can determine the design of our painting.'' Minghao suggested and gave Jun a piece of paper which he took some time after. Jun was hesitant at first, but wrote something. after 10 minutes they exchanged papers, but Jun didn't pick it up, instead he faced Minghao.

''this is dumb, why don't we just tell each other. it's not that big of a deal.'' Minghao nodded and took both papers, stuffing them in his bag. they had a normal talk, Jun revealing he wanted to be a dancer since he was little and he always loved singing. Minghao was confusedas to why Jun was talking to him in a nice manner. Minghao's dream was like Jun's which he found surprising.

Switching to Joshua, he was in the middle of his music lesson, which he found boring. maybe because he didn't have anyone to talk to since Minghao had art. the only thing interesting about the lesson was the teacher, he was an incredibly hot guy who looked younger than what he was. he was around 30 so Joshua tried to avoid looking at him since it made him feel creepy.  
as you could probably tell, Joshua was a closeted gay. his family are a bunch of homophobic Christians, so if they found out, they would throw and disown Joshua right at that moment, and he didn't want that. at least, not right now.

a little while later the bell rang, and the students moved on to the next classroom and after a while, finished the day. in the meantime, Minghao and Joshua reunited again, sharing their experiences throughout the day. Joshua had been convincing himself since he met Minghao to come out to him. before he could do anything though, Minghao dragged him to a café of sorts. when they arrived, Joshua looked up and read the sign.

**_Jamjam café_ **

''this is where my friend Mingyu works, i promised him i'd come today. sorry'' Minghao apologised, and they entered the café. it was a small, cozy space with four desks and paintings hanging from the wall.  
''Mingyu.'' Minghao sang is a sing-song voice and soon, a tall figure showed up.

''Minghao, did you bring a frie- ARGHhH'' both Minghao and Joshua flinched hard when Mingyu slipped, which wasn't a huge surprise to Minghao since Mingyu was a walking disaster.  
Joshua, however, got concerned, so while Minghao was laughing hysterically he helped Mingyu up.

''ah, thank you. i spilled ice on the floor and forgot to mop it.'' he scratched his arm in embarrassment.

''anyway, the usual?'' Minghao nodded while Mingyu stared at Joshua, waiting for his order.  
''i'll have the same, then.'' Joshua blurted out, Mingyu nodded and saluted so the two boys went to sit down.  
Joshua took a deep breath.

''i need to tell you something Minghao'' he said, making the younger look at him confused. honestly, Joshua didn't know how Minghao would react. like, would he still want to be his friend? or will he bully him like the others.

''i'm gay.'' Joshua closed his eyes, not wanting to see Minghao's reaction. he was scared. after a while, he felt a tap on his shoulder. he looked up to see Minghao's face, and he was smiling.  
''by the way you were acting i thought it would have been something more serious.'' he laughed and hugged Joshua, making him flustered. Minghao heard a sniffle coming from the older and panicked.

''wait, don't cry, please.'' Minghao chuckled and hugged Joshua even tighter. Mingyu already brought their order and looked at the two confused.  
''it's okay.'' Minghao rocked Joshua back and forth until he calmed down.  
''i thought you would hate me.''

''i would never''

''so are you two done? i kinda hate to be third wheeling here.''

''shut up Mingyu, don't you have work?'' Minghao turned to Mingyu, who sat across from the two. Mingyu looked at him and took a sip of his tea, not moving an inch. Minghao and Mingyu held eye contact for what seemed like ages until Minghao broke it with a question.

''you work in a coffee shop and you don't drink coffee. why is that?'' he raised his eyebrow.

''i already had 6 cups, i think i'm going to die if i drink more.'' Minghao felt bad for Mingyu in all seriousness, the guy quit school to spend his every day working in a shop to take care of his little siblings since his parents were never in the picture. they left after his youngest sister was born. Mingyu had to drop out because they didn't have enough money, and he also couldn't get a decent job anywhere else since he was too young. so while his siblings are at school, he works and then picks them up. Minghao looked at Mingyu only to see him standing up and running to the bar to serve customers. he turned around and widened his eyes.

''Joshua, look. it's Seungkwan and Hansol.'' Joshua turned around too. after they ordered they came their way, much to Joshua's dismay.

''well, would you look at that?'' Seungkwan and Hansol made their way to sit at a table next to Joshua and Minghao's. Joshua covered his face, making Minghao laugh at him.

''by the way, my name-'' Minghao couldn't finish his sentence because Seungkwan interrupted him.

''Xu Minghao, a transfer student. moved from China when you were 14, no siblings and father works at J One.'' Minghao widened his eyes, but quicklyy looked at Seungkwan suspiciously.  
''you were right, Joshua.'' he whispered in his ear.

''He must be psychic.''


	3. III

''WuuuuUUuHHhhaAA'' a noise and a crash at once. Minghao just stood still, terrified in the middle of what seemed like Seungkwan's mental and physical breakdown. only after two minutes, the younger noticed the frog boy beside him. he looked at him.  
  
''you saw nothing.'' said Seungkwan, standing up from his spot. the ladder just flipped a lunch kart, pushed by one of the preschool teachers right in front of Minghao. the teacher looked angry, but the blonde boy didn't care at all. Minghao shook his head and wished he would never encounter something like that again. he met up with Joshua in front of their first class, Joshua still being awkward because of what happened the day before. Minghao pat him on the shoulder and together they entered the class.  
  
''move you fucking fag.'' Joshua got pushed straight into a wall by Seungcheol, his girlfriend snickering behind him. Minghao couldn't process what had just happened. did they just call him a fag? he didn't know how they would even know.

''oh my dear god, Joshua, are you okay?'' he asked, and helped him up. Joshua hugged his textbooks closer to his chest, shook his head and ran out, not saying a thing. class was just about to start, but Minghao didn't care and ran after him. this was more important.

he searched everywhere for the older boy, encountering Jeonghan and Wonwoo on his way. the 4th years skipped class and were about to go to a coffee shop. well, only Jeonghan, but he dragged poor Wonwoo with him. Minghao explained what happened and the two boys helped him.

''okay, you two check the library and lockers, i'm going to check the bathroom and the music room.''

after they split up Minghao ran like crazy, trying to find Joshua. he avoided the vicious librarian whom he hated with a passion and the creepy janitor who looked like Filch from Harry Potter. he checked the music room, and had no luck. after he searched for a hot minute, he heard whimpering coming from the bathroom.  
  
''hello, Joshua?'' he said with a soft voice and heard a stall open. his eyes landed on Joshua, whose eyes were red from crying. he wondered why the older had freaked out so much over Seungcheol's comment. it still wasn't nice, he knew that, but it surprised him when he ran out, crying. he also wondered how the hell Seungcheol knew this since he was the only one who heard him come out.   
  
his eyes widened. there was someone who might have told Seungcheol...

  
_Seungkwan.  
  
_

he shook his head and grabbed Joshua by his hand and dragged him to the canteen, bumping into Jeonghan and Wonwoo. Jeonghan almost started crying when he saw Joshua, since he was so worried for the young boy.  
  
''how about we just skip school and go to Jamjam? Mingyu needs some company.'' said Minghao, the other three agreeing. Jeonghan had, too, grabbed Joshua's hand. Minghao, besides holding Joshua's, he also grabbed Wonwoo's, taking him by surprise. they walked together in silence, never letting off of each other's hands. after 15 minutes they successfully sneaked past the school guards, Jeonghan showing a way through the back of the school which he found in his 1st year.

''so you stole a key from the school office 3 years ago and you still have it?'' Joshua furrowed his eyebrows. the older laughed and dropped the key into his hands.  
''i'm graduating soon so i want you two to have it because i won't have any use of it. just watch out for the janitor who comes past the door at 7am, 9am and 12am. besides him and his snarly cat, no one ever comes here.'' he explained and they made their way towards the coffee shop. Mingaho made sure to let the others go ahead before I told Jeonghan about Mingyu's crush on Wonwoo.

Jeonghan enjoyed hearing about that kind of stuff, and he was also good at making it happen since he was in a lot of relationships already. Minghao learned that Jeonghan used to date Seungcheol in secret, but they later broke up because Seungcheol got popular amongst the ladies. Seungcheol was bisexual with the preference for women, or that's what Jeonghan told Minghao, anyway. Jeonghan was heartbroken, and Seungcheol tried making up to him by allowing him to hang out with his gang. he admitted it took him some time to realize that the guy didn't care about him at all. 

Jeonghan told Minghao that Wonwoo, like Mingyu, was gay and in love, but neither of them would admit it.  
  
_It looks like we need to step in_

Minghao thought and smirked, receiving a puzzled look from the older. he shrugged and jogged to catch up to Joshua and Wonwoo, Jeonghan following him. after some time they finally reached the shop and entered by slamming the doors open, giving a cleaning Mingyu a heart attack. he stumbled back and luckily broke nothing beside him or himself.  
  
''don't you have school? what the hell are you doing here?'' he ran his hand through his hair, clearly stressed from something.

''we had an incident... i'll tell you later.'' Minghao responded and introduced Jeonghan and Wonwoo to him, and they sat down while Mingyu prepared their coffee. they sat at their usual booth, seeing that there were not a lot of customers at that hour. while they were sitting, Minghao looked back, seeing a smiling Mingyu. he turned back around and told Jeonghan the plan he had come up with. when Mingyu was done, he sat down next to Wonwoo since there was no space on the other side of the booth. after 10 minutes, Minghao stood up, followed by Jeonghan.  
  
''well, if you'd excuse us, we'll take our coffee and... watch drug dealers go down the road.'' Minghao blurted out, took his coffee and started walking towards the door. he was quickly followed by Jeonghan, who dragged the clueless Joshua behind him like a rag doll. Mingyu opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out.  
  
when the three got outside, Minghao and Jeonghan peeked through the glass window of the coffee shop to see what was happening. Joshua still stood there like a bag of potatoes, dropped off a truck after it ran over a rock.   
  
''what are you two doing?'' he asked and sat down on the sidewalk.  
  
''spying obviously, we want to get Mingyu and Wonwoo together- Jeonghan, look!.'' Minghao nudged the older boy beside him when he saw that the two pulled out their phones. Mingyu was one smooth guy. not even 10 minutes have passed, and he already got his number. it also looked like Mingyu was the only one making conversation, which wasn't surprising.   
  
after about 20 minutes, the three entered the shop again. they made their way towards the table when Mingyu stood up.  
  
''thank you.'' he whispered when he passed Minghao. Minghao nodded and smiled.

''you left me here. where did you go?'' Wonwoo spoke for the first time in days, by the looks of it even Jeonghan was surprised.  
''like Minghao said, we watched drug dealers down the road.'' Jeonghan laughed awkwardly.  
  
''wait, we did?'' Joshua was put in a headlock by Minghao who also covered his mouth.  
  
''of course we did.'' he said, emphasising 'did'.


	4. IV

after Minghao almost chocked Joshua to death, they spent the entire afternoon at the cafe. well, Jeonghan and Wonwoo left since it got late in the afternoon. Minghao didn't care if his mom yelled at him for coming home late and Joshua stayed with him. he was dreading coming home since his mom and dad will for sure yell at him, but like Minghao, he didn't care.  
  
''what time is it?'' Mingyu was pacing back and forth. Minghao and Joshua looked at him puzzled while sipping on their 4th coffee. no one will sleep tonight, they knew that.   
  
''it's 4pm, Mingyu calm down.'' Joshua looked at his watch, he was still sitting in the booth. his eyes landed on Mingyu who was leaning on the counter, looking at the door while biting his nails.  
  
''shit.'' he murmured under his breath and ran back, coming back with a coat and quickly trying to put it on only resulting in him dropping stuff.  
  
''woah, big guy, calm down.'' Minghao said and grabbed Mingyu by the shoulders. Mingyu stopped and took a deep breath.  
  
''the person who was supposed to watch the cafe didn't show up.'' he took another deep breath and again put his coat on.  
''watch the cafe? why?'' Joshua said, twirling his cross earring. Mingyu looked at him and sighed.  
''because i need to get my siblings from the school and bring them home.'' he finally said and made his way to the door. he turned around to look at Minghao.  
''can you two watch it for a bit? i'm going to be right back.'' he said and ran, the little bells from above the door making a noise when he closed the door.  
  
''okay...''  
  
Minghao looked at Joshua, who shrugged and got his bag on the table, pulling out a blue binder. Minghao joined him, and they did their homework. they already got so much homework, and it was only the second week of the school. when they were doing their English homework, Joshua's phone rang. he looked at the screen terrified and didn't answer it.  
  
''who was that?'' Minghao spoke when the older's phone stopped ringing. Joshua exhaled deeply and ran his fingers through his hair.  
  
''my dad.'' his phone made a 'ding' and the screen lit up, showing an unread text message. he picked the phone up and checked his message from his dad.  
  
 **Father:**  
 _where are you? you brat! you missed church today._ _come home immediately_  
  
he shut his phone after looking at the message, deciding that he didn't care. he might regret it later though. in that moment, the doors of the cafe opened with force.  
  
''you came back already?'' said Minghao while looking at the exhausted Mingyu. he nodded and took off his coat, putting it behind the counter on its original place.  
''where are the kids?'' asked Minghao, confused.  
  
'i took them home.'' Mingyu said while serving the two customers who came. the _jamjam cafe_ was never full of customers except maybe on weekends so it was peaceful most of the time. after serving, Mingyu came to the booth with another set of coffee's for every single one of them.  
they stayed there and chatted until the cafe closed at 9pm. Joshua kinda dreaded going home because of that, but hey, it was worth it. he got to spend time with Minghao and Mingyu and he didn't mind a little 'beating' when he came home.  
  
Minghao, not knowing anything about Joshua, he didn't give it much thought. he waved to Joshua and Mingyu and made his way home. after 15 minutes he stopped in front of his door. he saw that the lights were still on, meaning that his mother was still awake. he unlocked the door and without looking went straight into his room.  
  
''young man, where were you?!'' his mom shouted, but Minghao already shut his door and locked it, just in case. he sat on his bed, deep in thought. not much later, he got up to shower and went straight to sleep. he almost feel asleep when he heard his phone ding. he let out a grunt and picked up his phone, seeing a message from Joshua.  
  
 **bibleking12495:**  
did you make it home safe?  
  
Minghao chuckled at Joshua's message.  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
i did.  
  
 **coffeminguy:**  
i also made it home safe, thanks for worrying.  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
who de fuq added you  
  
 **coffeminguy**  
i added myself, thank you very much  
  
 **bibleking12495:**  
the bitch stole my phone heh  
  
 **coffeeminguy:**  
i did nOt do such a thing.

 **fairytooth:**  
why the fqu lyin'  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
anyway, i'm going to sleep. see you tomorrow at scHOol Joshua  
  
 **coffeeminguy:**  
haha very funny  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
lol  
  
 **bibleking12495:**  
lol  
  
 **coffeminguy:**  
that was sarcasm bdw  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
i know  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
bye  
  
Minghao shut his phone off and went to sleep.  
  


  
_________  
  
after the boys waved goodbyes to each other, Mingyu made his way towards his and his little siblings' house. he had two younger sisters and one younger brother who were all the ages from 5 to 12. he also had an older sister who would take care of the young ones if Mingyu had other work to do, but they didn't go along well. his sister didn't live with them, she lived with her husband and said many times that she could take the children in if Mingyu couldn't support them anymore. he first refused it, but later thought it might be for the best because he didn't make enough to pay for the bills, and would most likely get kicked out of the flat by the end of the month. hemade the decision to call his sister. he just wanted the best for his little siblings.  
  
Mingyu shook his head and replaced his frown with a smile, opening the door.  
  
''i'm home.'' he whispered since everyone was sleeping. he quietly walked up the stairs to his bedroom where he also fell asleep afterwards.  
  
_________  
  
the morning didn't go well for Joshua. he first had to sneak out of the house to avoid bumping into his father, which was later on proven impossible. his father grabbed him by the hand. Joshua hissed in pain from last night.

''no funny business, okay?'' Joshua just stared at the taller guy in fear and nodded slowly. as soon as he released him, he sprinted through the door.  
  
when he came to the school gates, he looked around for Seungcheol and his little gang. he saw that they were nowhere in sight and ran to the school entrance.  
  
''where do you think you are going, you little shit?'' he heard someone say behind him. he slowly turned around to see Seungcheol who pushed him into the wall. after that, Seungcheol and his little gang did something that they did pretty much every time they saw Joshua alone, which was throwing him... into a garbage container.  
  
as soon as they did that, Joshua stood up, and with a little effort pulled himself out of the container. he slid down the container to sit on the floor.  
  
''yo, Joshua, are you okay?'' Joshua's eyes widened when he heard Minghao's voice. he tried not to tear up.  
  
Minghao was minding his own business when he saw Joshua climbing out of the garbage container. he saw Joshua sit on the floor, his hair sticking in random directions, his clothes stained from dirt from when Seungcheol pushed him. Minghao knew that there was no way he'd let Joshua be like that in school.   
  
**fairytooth:**  
hey mingyu, we're coming again in a bit.  
  
 **coffeminguy:**  
sure, what happened?  
  
 **fairytooth:**  
you'll see.  
  
Minghao helped Joshua up and together they walked all the way to the jamjam cafe. skipping the classes again.


	5. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey, no I'm not dead.

''you're here again.''

''geez Mingyu, can't you be nicer?'' Minghao shook his head into Joshua's direction, the older boy already sitting in the usual booth and looking down. Mingyu sighed and rolled his eyes. he grabbed Minghao by the shoulders, turned him around and pushed him in Joshua's direction.

''go. you need to calm him down. i'll make us some tea,'' he whispered. he disappeared behind the counter, and Minghao walked into the direction of his fellow friend.

''is everything all right?'' he sat down next to his and leaned his head on his shoulder. Joshua nodded and bit his lip. Suddenly his phone rang, and he looked at the caller ID.

''who is that?'' it was an unknown caller ID, but Minghao still picked it up.

''hello?'' he answered unsure.

''Minghao, it's me Jeonghan. Seungkwan told me what happened. are you two all right? are you hurt? oh gosh, I-''

''woah calm down.'' he stood up and wales towards the toilets to talk with Jeonghan in peace.

''we are okay, Shua is just shaken up a little, you don't need to worry at all.'' Minghao explained, he still needed to get to the bottom of this whole thing.

''did they do anything to him, if that happened again, I'll-'' he shut up on the other side, making Minghao confused.  
''If what happened?'' he asked and Jeonghan sighed on the other end.  
''if you're next to Shua, please move away.''

''i already did.''

''i think you deserve to know since you are his friend.'' he said.

''mhm?''

''well you know how he is older than you and still in the 2nd year?'' Minghao thought about it. he never thought much of it, he just assumed he started school a bit later.

''well, he was supposed to be in the 4th year with us.'' Minghao gasped. what? how? didn't he say he only came to Korea a year ago?

''i know you're confused. he was held back for 2 years.''

''how?'' he knew people getting held back for one year, his old friends were like that and he barely passed.

''i don't know. the first year his academic results were deplorable so he repeated it. the second time he barely went to school so he had to repeat because of that.''

''i think it's the first time i've seen him this often at school. he never attended school for a week straight.'' he explained and Minghao gasped again.

he had no idea Joshua was like that. he never said anything so he just didn't pay attention to it and now he knew much more about him.

his eyes travelled to the table where the older boy was sitting at, seeing the frown on his face while he looked at his phone.

''wait, how did you get my phone number and don't you have class now?'' Minghao just now remembered that he didn't yet ask that.

''oh. let's just say that Seungkwan is a reliable source of information.'' there was a laugh on the other side.

''that brat''

''and also me and Wonwoo skipped again, and bumped into Jihoon on the way out.'' he explained, and i nodded at no one.

after some more chatting Minghao ended the call and made his way towards the table where he saw Mingyu placing the hot cups on the table. Minghao nodded at him and he sat beside Joshua, Minghao sitting across from him.

''HELLO PEASANTS, oh it's just you three.'' all of their heads snapped towards the person, seeing a blonde boy with another male tagging along behind him. It was none other than Boo Seungkwan and his boyfriend Hansol.

Mingyu quickly took a sip of his tea and stood up, running behind the counter.

''why are none of you at school?'' Mingyu questioned while preparing what the two newcomers ordered.  
''i think that's none of your business.''

''Seungkwan, shut up.'' Hansol's deep voice rang out. he sighed and went to sit with Minghao and Joshua, Seungkwan and Mingyu joining them soon after.

''why are all of you so gloomy, cheer up.'' Seungkwan did some sort of a dance while sipping on his coffee. Minghao looked at him and gestured to Joshua who was looking at the table. Seungkwan quickly caught on fortunately and started telling jokes which cheered up the boys.

''Seungkwan, i was about to murder you because you leaked my phone number, but unfortunately I won't have to do that.'' Minghao smiled and Seungkwan looked at him in horror.

''unfortunately?'' Seungkwan said dramatically while making chocking sounds and falling onto Vernon.

''hELLO BITCHES, ME IS BACK!'' another voice interrupted their conversation.

''Jihoon, language!''

Mingyu again quickly stood up, almost knocking his drink over. they didn't even hear the three come in.

''Wonwoo, Jihoon, Jeonghan, what are you all doing here?'' questioned Seungkwan while eyeing Jihoon suspiciously. they just shrugged and joined them at the table. they quickly started chatting and soon another bell rang. Mingyu dropped his head in annoyance and stood up for the 4th time today. there were just some normal guests ordering stuff. it was a kid and her grandma.

''should we do something to that kid?''

''no.''

''yes.''

everyone looked at Jihoon who shrugged and squeezed past Minghao to sit on the edge with Seungkwan.  
they whispered stuff to each other.

''we need one more person. Joshua come here.'' Joshua looked up at the sound of his name and looked at the two with a puzzled expression.

''come here, you're the most innocent looking so you'll be perfect''

''why can't you two do it alone?''

''Seungkwan's sweet expressions always come out creepy.''

''rude.''

''whatever you two are doing, stop it.'' all of them flinched at the sound of Mingyu's voice.

''shut up tree. so anyway-''

''i wouldn't have a problem you two doing anything to anyone, but those two are hella annoying and if you upset them they're going to call the manager.'' Mingyu whispered so the other two wouldn't be able to her them.

''and i've seen my co worker deal with the woman and he told me that he barely got her out.''

''oh, that's bad.'' Jihoon scooped past Minghao again, abandoning Seungkwan.

Mingyu exhaled and sat back down with his mates on the table.  
''so are you feeling better, Shua?'' he asked and Joshua nodded.

''your tea definitely helped. thank you.'' he smiled and twirled his finger around his earring. everyone's lips then curled up into smiles, and soon then erupted into chatter.

''excuse me!'' the woman's voice boomed out. Mingyu looked over at her table, seeing her glare daggers at him. he turned back around and rolled his eyes.

''it has begun, kill me now.'' he stood up and put on a smile for the woman.  
everyone went quiet, but quickly erupted into a whispering mess.

''how may i help you, mam?'' Mingyu walked beside her table, and she looked up at him.  
''this coffee is too bitter, i want a new one.'' Mingyu almost rolled his eyes.

''With all due respect, coffee is supposed to be bitter.'' the woman's face went red with anger.  
____________  
''should we do something?'' whispered Hansol while peeking at the table across the Jamjam café.

''don't worry, i got this.''  
____________

''how dare you talk back to me?!'' the woman yelled, making her daughter look at her weirdly.

''again, the coffee you ordered is supposed to be bitter mam.'' Mingyu pushed his thin rimmed glasses up.

''i want to speak to your manager.'' she demanded, making Mingyu even more annoyed with her.

''please leave mam if this is not for your liking.'' Seungkwan butted in, making the woman snap her face at him.

''i said, i asked to speak to the manager.''

Mingyu looked at the tome on his phone, seeing his shift almost ended already. he hoped his co worker is going to come soon.

''you're speaking to him'' Seungkwan answered her while she looked at him with a crazy expression. was this woman crazy?

''you're not the manager, kid.'' Seungkwan smirked at that.

''you're right. he's not, I am.'' Mingyu answered. the woman looked at him with a puzzled expression.

''what is this commotion?'' a new voice rang out. Mingyu turned around and smiled at his coworker's face.   
''It's just an annoying customer.'' he said.

''is that so? then mam, i think you'll need to leave.'' the newcomer said, his lisp sticking out a bit. the woman looked up at him, scared. she quickly nodded. after getting all of her stuff, she grabbed her niece's hand and they both left quickly.

''thanks Hoseok.'' he looked at the guy beside him.

''please tell me, am i really that scary?'' he asked while running his hand through his black hair.

''i guess, you're early.''

''i know, i just though i'd come earlier so you wouldn't miss me too much''

______________

''that guy is hot.'' Jeonghan whispered while looking at the extremely buff guy.

''Jeonghan, your gay is showing.'' Minghao whispered back.

''but am i wrong?''

''not at all.''


	6. Sorry

Hi, I apologize for not updating, I'm kind of busy right now writing other books. I have chapters written in advance but I would rather update when I know for sure that they're written perfectly and the way I want it for the sake of the story. 

Thank youuu


End file.
